o sweet child of mine
by piperreynas
Summary: "thalia wishes so much, that things had been different, that it could've been her turned into a tree and sometimes she even goes so far as to pray to the gods to heal her, nothing." or, annabeth gets turned into a tree instead of thalia. it doesn't go well.


_**oh, love is the crooked thing**_

 _based on the prompt of ObeliskX_

Thalia decides she _hates_ her cousin very soon after meeting him.

And it's mainly because, from what she's heard from Grover, he had a potentially abusive stepfather for quite some time, he's scrawny and generally unattractive, he almost _died_ an infinite number of times on their last quest, he gets bullied and picked on regularly in the mortal world, and yet he's still _vibrant_ , and _animated_ , and generally the _happiest person she's_ _ **ever**_ _known_ , especially considering his current situation.

According to her sixteen years of limited human interaction, that's almost completely _impossible._

(But maybe, that's why he's her favorite cousin too. And she knows it's why Luke still hates him as much as she used too.)

(Jesus. Since when does she use such big words? Annabeth really did rub off on her…)

She thinks about Annabeth every day. After all, she nearly died for Thalia and Luke. She is the reason they are still alive. And to think, at one time she had been a lost little twelve year old girl. Luke on the other hand turns _so angry_ at the smallest reminder of their little girl, that no one talks about her, and the only acknowledgement of her sacrifice is the pine tree on the hill.

She wishes so much, that things had been different, that it could've been her turned into a tree, sometimes, she even goes so far as to pray to the gods to heal her.

Nothing.

::::::::::

When Luke nearly kills Percy with a scorpion and leaves, she almost breaks down and cries right there in front of her father's statue. But then again, she should have seen this coming. After all, he had been ranting about overthrowing the gods since the good ol' days of running all over the country.

As Thalia wipes off the sweat beading on her cousin's forehead she thinks in a small moment of weakness that she should have stopped him from doing this. And then she scoffs. Nothing would've stopped Luke.

She sets her face. She never needed him anyway. She's fine without him.

(But she's not fine. Not really. She needs him as much as she needs oxygen to breathe. In all honesty, she can't do _this_ , she can't be the _prophecy kid,_ without Luke.)

(After Percy goes to sleep, she pulls out the warm fleece blanket, and the soft blue pillow Luke used to sleep with when they were on the run, and she cries into the familiar scent of sweat, and sunshine, and warm skin, and Oreos. She screams into the pillow that smells like Luke until her throat is raw.)

::::::::::

She has a nightmare after she cries and screams and grieves herself to sleep. Suddenly, it's the day before Thalia's sixteenth birthday, and they're back on that hill. It's raining torrents, and Luke's leg is bleeding again, Thalia has a nasty gash in her side, and Annabeth's ankle is sprained, and they're all running like hell, Thalia and Luke trying to keep Annabeth in front of them, ensuring she gets pas t the barrier first.

But somewhere in the rain and mud, they lose track of Annabeth and somehow she's crying out in pain because a cyclops just stepped on her arm. 'Thalia! Luke!' she screams. (God, she is never going to forget the sound of that,) 'Help me!'

They stop in their tracks, and run back to Annabeth. The cyclops drags her backwards, and she yells in pain, her broken arm nearly being ripped out of its socket. 'No!' Thalia screams. She's crying now. 'Hold on, kiddo! We're gonna get you, I promise, just hold on!' Luke yells, trying to get past the mud, and they're _so close_ , when the cyclops jams a knife into Annabeth's side, and twists,

They stop in their tracks. The breath leaves Thalia's lungs. She _runs_. Or at least she tries to, until Luke grabs around the waist and hauls her away from Annabeth.

'NO!' she sobs. 'Luke, we have to go back, we have to go back, please,' she begs.

Luke's crying too. 'There's no point Thalia, she's gone. We have to make it! For her!' he yells

'No, please ANNABETH!'

'Thalia please, come on-'

She bolts upright, tears running down her face, gasping for breath.

::::::::::

So, truth be told, she's actually kind of relieved when Percy shows up at her doorstep late at night, and asks her to sneak out with him to get the Golden Fleece. (But don't you ever tell him that.) She was considering going to ask him herself.

As they leave with Grover, and Percy's pet _cyclops_ she wonders what Annabeth would think of this trip, what she would think of Tyson, of Percy.

Would she be disgusted by the fact that they were traveling with the very thing that killed her? Would she like Tyson? Would she be worried for them?

Percy unties the small boat from the dock, and uses his nifty Aquaman powers to get fifty yards from the shore in five minutes, and as they're speeding away, she looks back at the flickering barrier and gulps. (How are they going to do this, again?)

::::::::::

When Grover clippity-clops up to Cabin One a few days after they get the Fleece back to camp, Percy and Thalia are playing cards (and Percy, is _creaming_ her. How the hell is this possible? He has kelp for brains for Zeus' sake.)

She's somewhat alarmed by the fact that Percy is winning, and she just doled out the first hand. 'Ha!' Percy cries, triumphantly, waving his hand in the air. 'Take that _Sparky_!'

She scowls. 'It's only the first hand Kelp Head, just you wait. I am going to _destroy_ you.'

She's about to pick up a card, when Grover yells, 'Thalia! Percy! You have to see this!'

Thalia may hate Percy, but they are perfectly in sync when they jump up and grab a sword to go fight whatever's on the other side of the border.

There's only one problem- when they run up the hill, swords drawn, there isn't anything to fight. It's very disconcerting. They freeze and stare at the border for a bit before awkwardly putting down their weapons. Thalia shuffles a bit, before she looks around to see everyone running toward the tree- _Annabeth's_ tree. She goes pale instantly.

'Oh gods! Something happened didn't it?' she cries. She's hyperventilating. 'Percy, what happened? Oh gods,'

Percy looks the same way she feels. 'How am I supposed to know what happened? I don't even know who she is!' he whines. Then he narrows his eyes. 'Grover, what the hell is happening?' he says sharply. They both turn to fix him with penetrating glares.

Now he gulps, shuffles around, not meeting their eye. 'Nothing!' he bleats, nervously. 'Nothing happened! I didn't do anything. Come on Thalia, let's go play um… cards! Yeah!' he nods vehemently, and runs off, but before he can get anywhere, Percy and Thalia grab his arms and haul him back so that he's in front of them again.

'Grover.' Thalia says, glaring.

Grover swallows. 'It-it wasn't my fault, okay! Clarisse put the Fleece on the tree, and it healed…maybe a little too well.' He runs his hoof back and forth on a little patch of ground.

Percy glares. 'What the hell is that supposed to mean?!'

Grover whimpers. 'Um…well…you can see part of Annabeth from under the tree.' He says.

Thalia and Percy stare. ' _What?!_ ' they say, in freaky unison. Then they run like hell, pushing through the crowd gathered in front of the tree not bothering to see who they run over, because Thalia is so worried right now it's not even funny. After pushing, shoving and generally trampling several not-so-happy campers, she reaches the tree and freezes, because how the _hell_ did _this_ happen?

Annabeth is laying on the ground, unconscious, just as Luke and Thalia left her, dirt staining her face, princess curls matted beyond recognition, arm splayed at a sickening angle, blood polling around her side.

Percy gapes at her, eyes wide.

They all watch as the knife wound closes up and becomes a scar, as her arm rights itself, as her hair untangles, as her eyelids flutter open, and Annabeth fixes her stormy grey gaze on Thalia. Thalia lets out a sob.

Annabeth opens her mouth. 'T-Thalia?' she asks.

Thalia beams. Tears are actually running down her face now. 'Hey, kiddo. Long time no see?'

:::::::::


End file.
